Metagame

In a general sense, the term metagame refers to trends within how that game is played by its players, or a subset of its players. At any time, certain characters, strategies, tactics, tricks, skills, etc. may be popular. The metagame tends to evolve over time, as players adapt to it in order to gain an advantage, and then others adapt to these adaptations, and so on.

For example, if Tactic X is popular within a gaming community, some players may choose to use Tactic Y for the advantages it offers over Tactic X, even though Tactic Y may be considered a poor choice in most circumstances. Likewise, Tactic Z, while usually strong, may be avoided because of its vulnerabilities to Tactic X. Eventually Tactic X may become less prominent as more players adapt to it. Tactic Z may come back into vogue as a result, or an entirely new effective tactic may be discovered.

At higher levels of play metagame can have a more specific meaning and refer to the tendencies and proficiencies of the top players. The best competitors don't need to know the trends among weaker players, but they do need to know how to overcome the handful of people who could potentially beat them. In the Smash Community, the tier list has changed alongside the metagame of the best players.